Osterfeuer

Happy Easter everybody! I don't know about you guys, but the weather here in Leipzig is wonderful. We are having a 58 degree day, with only partial clouds in the sky. What a marvelous day. Either way, I have spent a majority of this week and weekend catching up on homework from Spring Break (i.e. finishing 3 research papers on top of already behind homework). However, I do have one good story for you all, so let's jump right in!

On Thursday afternoon, a troop of us went over to Geyser house, which is an after school program for kids to volunteer. On this particular day, Geyser house was having their Osterfeuer (Easter fire), which is a common tradition throughout Germany. Our job was to play with the kids, sell the bread on sticks, and keep the fire running. Parents and Children came in mass to enjoy the Easter fire, and we sold out of dough fairly quickly. In our time there, we met with people from Australia, kept children from hitting dogs with burning sticks on accident, and wrecked shop in basketball (Germans really aren't good at basketball).

Main Geyser House building

Americans destroying at basketball

Wrapping dough on a stick

Baking dough on a stick

Once it was dark, when I was tending to a dying fire, a small girl perhaps four-years old in pink came up to me, and said something in German. I, having less than a four-year old's comprehension of German, had no clue what she said. Her father, who looked like Thor the Norse god of thunder, came up and translated for us. "You need to use smaller sticks to help the fire." She said. I was blown away. This girl, not even in grade school knew more about building fires than half of the people I was volunteering with. We then spend the rest of the hour she was there by collecting twigs and trading them to throw into the fire. Along the way she gave me important tips like "if the stick is too big, we break it over the knee", and "we don't use wet wood for the fire". A true genius. After our time of minor arson was at an end, she waved goodbye, and I went back to tending the now roaring fire. I figured the night was over, that is until fifteen minutes later she came back without her father and stood in front of me. I looked around, but could not see her fire. She held her hand out to me, and dropped a mysterious seed into my hand. The girl then said goodbye and disappeared into the night, in the direction of her father.

Magic Bean

I couldn't even make this up.

Either way, I hope your Easter is as exciting as mine has been, and I will get back to doing the ever shrinking pile of homework before me.

Ciao!

-Tad Kile